


the confrontation.

by dames_for_jamesbarnes



Series: i stole your heart (and broke it, too) [4]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV), Ocean's Eleven Trilogy (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Criminals, F/M, Team Dynamics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:20:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26556508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dames_for_jamesbarnes/pseuds/dames_for_jamesbarnes
Summary: “foyet’s girl?” rossi hums. he wasn’t aware foyet had a girl (long-term, at least), but his eyes go to the doors anyway. and he waits, patiently, those last five seconds.and then his eyes widen. because foyet’s girl is someone all right.someone rossi unfortunately knows quite well.
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner & David Rossi, Aaron Hotchner & The BAU Team, Aaron Hotchner/Reader
Series: i stole your heart (and broke it, too) [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1931206
Comments: 7
Kudos: 32





	the confrontation.

“i can do more.” 

the kid is quick, that’s for sure. he’s lived in vegas his whole life, and you don’t get out of the damn place unscathed without a little bit of speed. the kid’s got quick fingers, quick eyes, and quick poker hands. not only that, but being a certifiable genius amongst the known morons that peruse the slots surely gets old. 

so the kid does what he can, he steals and he picks, and he works his way up. hotch and rossi hadn’t even had a clue about him until he almost robbed them blind. he’s good. or, at the very least, he will be. 

but the thing is, he’s green. painfully so. he thinks they’re playing with him, hotch and rossi, and they run through situations, possibilities. he knows the theory, but he’s had yet to practice, and so there’s only so much that dave can use him for. 

“you’ve gotta work your way up, kid,” the elder murmurs, reaching to grip his shoulder, massage his thumb into the muscle on his neck. “it’s like hotch said. you need to know foyet’s schedule. what he does day-to-day.” 

that statement gets a blink from him, the slow kind that tells rossi all he needs to know about this rookie’s attitude. “i _know_ what he does day-to-day. i mean, i know a lot more than that, but. i know what he does minute-by-minute, if you want the full details,” reid chatters.

rossi just raises a brow, and he leans against the railing of the stairwell they’re perched on, opening his hands in a gesture that reads _enlighten me._

so the kid tells him. each and every conversation, word for word, the kid can recite. rossi would be more impressed if he wasn’t so spooked by the way the kid seemed to do it so… effortlessly. 

“i have a eiditic memory,” reid tells him, after taking a moment to pause (or breathe).

yeah, as if having a name for it makes it any better. 

but, in the end it’s appreciated. because then, at least, rossi isn’t so completely and utterly dumbstruck by what he sees next. 

“and 7:00 on the dot.” reid is winding down now — his voice gets low, and his eyes go to the upper staircase, watching the doors at the top. “or, in other words, about twenty seconds from now, the woman that foyet’s dating comes down those steps, dressed for their date at the most expensive place this casino offers. she works with the art that’s displayed here. deals it, as a side business.”

something about that tickles rossi’s brain. makes him ponder for a moment, reach a hand up to scratch at his beard. “foyet’s girl?” rossi hums. he wasn’t aware foyet had a girl (long-term, at least), but his eyes go to the doors anyway. and he waits, patiently, those last five seconds. 

and then his eyes widen. because foyet’s girl is someone all right. 

someone rossi unfortunately knows quite well.

“she comes down those steps and takes them to the windowed dining room,” reid whispers. his head tilts down as the woman in question starts to move past them, phone to her ear, eyes forward. “they meet at the table at 7:15. neither of them are a second late.” 

but when he turns to look at rossi, give him an eyebrow that screams _i told you so_ , the man is gone. 

-

“so this isn’t about her?” rossi asks. his voice is low, sharp. “you’re telling me that you didn’t plan to go after foyet from the beginning because he’s sleeping with her?” 

hotch doesn’t look at rossi, as if that makes it any better. as if his raised voice in a room of their team doesn’t grab everyone’s attention. all other conversations cease, of course, to hear exactly what hotch has to say. 

“wait, wait, wait, wait,” alvez murmurs to simmons. “who’re we talking about?” 

“some girl,” he gets back. “aren’t you paying attention?” 

“not just any girl, foyet’s girl.” lewis shakes her head, lifts her chin to look at hotch. but he’s not looking at anyone, just the glass in his hand, the swirl of the ice in it. 

“what’s so special about her?” alvez asks. “can someone tell me what’s going on?” 

“just a moment, beauties,” garcia chimes in, her fingers flying across her keyboard once again. “what’s her last name? i can get all the details on her in a moment’s notice.” 

at that, hotch smiles. faint, dreamy. his eyes aren’t on his glass, they’re on his hand, on the glint of his ring. “well,” he finally says, after a beat, “it used to be hotchner.” 

there’s a collective rush of murmurs, gasps, whatever the hell. the whole room seems to be caught in it, except for a few. morgan, prentiss, jareau. it’s not new discovery on their faces, but slow realization, and their eyes shuffle between the room, and rossi, and hotch, who still hasn’t looked up from his fixed point. 

because as much of a legend as hotchner is, he settled down for a while. took a step back from pulling one over on people, took an apartment in virginia with a girl no one knew…

and then he came back. and then he got reckless. and then he got arrested, and now he’s here.

“you told me she wasn’t the focus,” rossi sighs, and his hands are on his hips. he looks worn, more than he has this whole long road to get to even this point. “you told me you could do this without getting involved.”

“does he know what you look like?” morgan asks, a little agape, and finally hotch’s reverie seems to break. “hotch, did you go talk to her?” 

“i… might have gone to speak to her, yes.” there’s another commotion, a chorus of disbelief, before a voice cuts through them. 

“he talked to both of them,” reid says, finally. the whole room looks at him. “rossi… rossi had me tail him, and i saw him. he was standing, next to their table, and talking with both of them. foyet knows him. knows his real name, too.” 

“so hotch is blown,” jareau murmurs, and garcia’s eyes widen, turning to look at morgan. but of course, what can morgan give her that isn’t already unfolding in front of them? 

“what does that mean for him?” alvez asks, throwing his thumb at hotch. he’s looking at rossi now, the wisdom, the class, the funds. 

but there’s no sympathy in rossi’s gaze. and hotch doesn’t meet it right away, just lets his knuckles hit the wood and call another round to a bartender who isn’t there. “it means what it always means when someone is blown.” 

“it means i’m out.” hotch’s eyes finally lift, then. his chin is raised, to face each of them in turn. there’s no regret in them, just fire, and he looks at rossi last. “that’s what you were going to say. i’m out.”

and then he slumps again. head dipping, hand closing around the glass again. lifting it to his mouth, finishing the last couple of mouthfuls in one swoop. he moves to the door, one hand outstretched to push through it. he pauses, just before, gives looks all around to his team.

he really likes this team.

“i’m sorry, dave. but foyet is going to hurt her. and i can’t let that happen.”

and dave doesn’t answer, just raises a brow as they share one last look, and hotch is gone. his glass is the only remnant of his presence, a ring of condensation around the base. the clock is ticking, but their time crunch doesn’t seem to hit for a few seconds, the shock of all it all soaking in. 

“great. so now we’re down our idea man with nobody to replace him,” morgan huffs, shaking his head. 

“who could replace hotch? it’s hotch,” lewis murmurs, and there’s a ripple in the room as this news settles over them. but rossi, always rossi, is one step ahead of the rest. 

his hand moves to grab reid on the shoulder. thumb pressing into those muscles, squeezing tight. “i’ll handle the ideas. but that still means someone’s gotta step up.” no time to make another decision, and he turns to look at the youngest blood out of all of them. “well, kid,” he manages. “you said you were ready for more.” 

spencer’s eyes widen with the realization, with the tight grip. “what? what - what do you mean?” 

“here’s more. no more tailing. you ready to play a part?” 


End file.
